Phoenixville woman admits to $200K theft from Plymouth employer

NORRISTOWN — A Phoenixville woman who is a Canadian citizen faces time behind bars and potential deportation after she admitted to stealing more than $200,000 from her Plymouth employer.

Lucinda Castle, 50, of the 1000 block of West Bridge Street, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to 1 ½-to-five years in a state correctional facility after she pleaded guilty to charges of theft by unlawful taking, forgery and access device fraud in connection with incidents that occurred while she worked as an office manager at Ratex Business Solutions in Plymouth.

Judge Wendy Demchick-Alloy, who accepted a plea agreement in the case, also ordered Castle to complete 12 years’ probation after she’s paroled from prison, meaning Castle will be under court supervision for about 17 years.

Castle, who was employed by the company between 2007 and 2013, also is responsible for paying restitution totaling $236,035 to Ratex or to its insurance provider, the judge said.

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Ratex, according to court documents, is a leading independent provider of technology and consulting services to college and university book stores in the U.S. whose products have been utilized by area schools including Villanova University and Kutztown University.

Court papers indicate that the federal Department of Homeland Security has filed an immigration detainer against Castle, indicating she may be subject to removal from the U.S. after she completes her prison stint.

In addition to Canada, Castle listed The Netherlands as a country of citizenship.

An investigation of Castle began in April, when Ratex executives reported to Plymouth detectives that they discovered discrepancies in company credit card financial statements received from Castle. As office manager, Castle was responsible for accounts payable and receivable and was issued a company credit card to use for office expenses, according to the criminal complaint.

Castle also was responsible for collecting monthly expense reports from each employee who held a corporate credit card, for compiling the reports and turning them over to company executives for final review.

Company officials reviewing the April 2013 statements determined that totals on a company spreadsheet did not match what was listed on the credit card statement, according to the arrest affidavit.

When company executives asked Castle to come their offices to discuss the discrepancies, Castle allegedly stated, “Should I just leave now?” according to the arrest affidavit. Castle subsequently admitted to her bosses that she made unauthorized purchases using her corporate issued credit card, according to the criminal complaint.

A financial audit was then conducted by an outside accounting firm hired by the company, court papers indicate.

The investigation determined Castle used her company issued credit card to make unauthorized personal purchases at retailers such as Wawa, Best Buy, Netflix, Kohl’s and at local state stores and restaurants, according to the criminal complaint. Authorities alleged Castle also set up an unauthorized recurring charge on one executive’s credit card to pay off court fines and costs she accrued in an unrelated matter, according to the criminal complaint.

As a result of Castle’s attempt to hide the unauthorized purchases, the company unknowingly carried a monthly credit card balance and was charged more than $3,000 in interest, authorities alleged.

“(Company executives) were led to believe by deception that the credit card balance was being paid off every month in order to avoid paying interest,” Plymouth Detective Andrew Moretti alleged in the arrest affidavit.

About the Author

Carl Hessler Jr. writes about crime and justice at the Montgomery County Courthouse for The Mercury and 21st Century Media Newspaper’s Greater Philadelphia area publications. A native of Reading, he studied at Penn State University and Kutztown University before graduating from Alvernia University with a degree in communications. He is a recipient of a National Headliner Award and has been honored for his writing by the Keystone Press Association, Philadelphia Press Association, Society of Professional Journalists and the Associated Press Managing Editors of Pennsylvania. Reach the author at chessler@pottsmerc.com
or follow Carl on Twitter: @MontcoCourtNews.